by Cherry Kay
“Lorelle, there you are.” He ran up to her where she stood next to the rock garden at the far end of the garden. A little brook must run through there but for the winter months there was nothing but an icy film, traces of a spring to come, one where the whole garden would come back to life.
“I was thinking,” he said. “We have got time to drive back to the city if you want to get one of your other dresses.”
She turned to him. “That's all right, Christopher. It's too far and the roads are terrible, why risk another two trips?”
“Or maybe one of the local shops. Mother must know of somewhere.”
“Really, it's not that big of a deal as I made out. There just seems to be surprise after surprise this holiday. I wasn't prepared for all this.”
“And I'm to blame. I'm such an idiot. I mean the dress thing, I explained it to Mother. Even she said I should have thought it through. It's just that I've never seen you look anything more than beautiful. If you wore a paper bag you'd be the best looking woman here.”
“Better looking than Jeannie.”
“Lorelle!”
“I'm sorry. I don't want a fight. I'm not the jealous type, you know that. I don't know why I reacted like that.” She hugged him, he was cuddly in a thick sweater. She closed her eyes. She had lied, she knew exactly why she had reacted that way and it was all to do with Judith and now – Jeannie.
But why waste a night of lovemaking on a pathetic argument over a party dress. No one at the party would be interested in her. If the guests were anything like Judith, they would take one look at her and assume she was the help anyway.
“It's good to see you smiling, Lorelle,” he said and kissed her.
“Oh Christopher!”
They turned around to see Jeannie threading her way along the snowy path in high heeled pumps and shivering in her cashmere sweater.
“Hope I'm not interrupting anything but I could do with your help in the house, Chris.”
Since when was he called 'Chris'? Lorelle asked herself.
“Sure Jeannie, I'll be right in.” He smiled and then looked at Lorelle.
Jeannie nodded and walked back to the house, almost slipping and giggling loudly as she went.
“Is it okay?” Christopher asked.
“Sure,” she said. “I'm fine. It's just two more days and then I can have you all to myself.”
“I look forward to it. You coming in, you look cold.”
They held hands and followed the footprints that Jeannie had made. Lorelle wondered what Jeannie had in mind for him to do, but decided to stay as calm as possible. She would go up to her room and read or put on some thicker clothes and go and do some sketches. She decided that to stay in the house might be the safest option.
Between them, Judith and Jeanie had decided that instead of having the party in the living room, after all, the Christmas tree was very big this year and took up almost a third of the room, they would decorate the hallway. It was grand enough and there was room enough, all it needed was some atmosphere.
“So, I thought,” Jeannie was saying to Christopher as Lorelle went to go upstairs, “that we could put up some holly, your mother has it growing along the back wall outside, and maybe some lights. We could arrange tables out here for the food and drinks and we could do something with the windows to make it look all festive. Maybe we might even be able to pick up a smaller tree over here by the door.” She held his hand and danced him to the big double doors of the entrance and looked up.
“Oh, you already have mistletoe!” She threw her arms around him and was balancing on the toes of one foot with one leg cocked behind her.
“You don't mind do you, Lorelle?” she said, while still looking at Christopher who was trying to pull away, looking desperately at Lorelle. Jeannie's grip was vice like.
“Be my guest.”
Jeannie left a cherry red lipstick kiss on Christopher's cheek and then released him.
“Let's see about finding some holly, we'll need a ladder, nails, a hammer, string. Come on, Chris.” She pulled him towards the kitchen.
“If you don't need me, I'll be reading upstairs,” Lorelle called to them as they disappeared.
“Oh don't stay upstairs on your own, Lorelle.” Judith suddenly appeared from the living room. “Come join me while I do some needle point, you can read in here.”
Lorelle felt powerless to refuse.
“Unless you don't want my company.” Her smile was full of charm but her eyes were steely. She returned to the living room and Lorelle went upstairs to collect her book and sketch pad. As she returned she saw Jeannie and Christopher preparing to transform the hall to a banqueting suite. Jeannie was laughing with glee.
“Just listen to them,” Judith said as Lorelle entered the living room, unnoticed by the two in the hall. “They get on so well.”
Lorelle plopped down into an armchair and opened her book.
“You're lucky you have such a good son in Christopher, he's very helpful like that.” She looked at the pages but was not reading.
“I know, and I want what's best for him.”
“And that isn't a black girlfriend, right?”
“Don't be ridiculous, Lorelle. I'm not a racist. I dated an African student for a year when I was in college. I said those things to get a rise out of you and it worked. You're just the type to fly into a rage and act in such an uncouth way.”
“So if it isn't my color, then why do you have a problem with me?”
Judith glared at her over the top of her reading glasses.
“I see,” Lorelle said. “This isn't about race, it's about class. I'm not high and mighty enough for him. And she is, right?”
“She comes from a good family, she could be yellow, pink or blue for all I care. I just don't want all his education and breeding going to waste.”
“But you don't know anything about me and my family.”
“Well look at you. The way you dress. Call yourself an artist. An artist? Have you even sold a piece of work?”
“As a matter of fact I have.”
“How many and how much for?”
“That's none of your business.”
“And why are you alienated from your family, why don't you spend Christmas with them?”
“It's a long story and, again, none of your business.”
“Fine, it's none of my business but Christopher is and I intend to keep it that way.”
“He's a grown man. He can make his own decisions.”
Their voices were lowered and they spoke threw their teeth, the necks stretching further and further towards the other from their respective seats. The living room door was closed but neither wanted to make Christopher aware of the argument for their own reasons.
“Just listen to them, Lorelle. Listen to how well they get on. And they have a lot in common.”
“So did you plan all this before Christopher came? If I hadn't shown up would you have had her oiled and naked and waiting in his bed?”
“I've spoken to Jeannie about Christopher for a long time. I showed her pictures and she was very keen to meet him. Now that she has, luckily, she is attracted to him.”
“Well that much is clear.”
“And I think we should give this a chance.”
“And you expect me to sit back and watch blondie steal my boyfriend?”
“People change, Lorelle. He might prefer her to you. Why should you deny him the chance? He hasn't put a ring on your finger. You say it's been ten months. Don't you think that strange?”
“I know what you're doing, you're trying to get me riled again but it won't work. I'm immune to you. Christopher can please himself. We'll see what he does and what he chooses.”
She sat back hard in the chair and flicked the pages in her book, her eyes had become too glassy to focus on the print. Instead she whipped out her sketch book and started sketching Judith from across the room in silence. When she'd finished drawing on horns and a tail coming from beneath her neatl
y pleated skirt, Christopher came in. She closed her sketch pad.
“What was that?” he asked, coming to sit on the arm of her chair.
“Nothing,” she said. “You guys finished out there?”
“Not yet. Jeannie got the idea of fairy lights but we don't have any.”
“Oh too bad,” Lorelle said as she smiled up at him.
“But she does. She's getting her coat on and then we'll drive over to her house and pick them up.”
“Again? I mean you want to drive up and down those icy roads? It will get dark soon.”
“We won't be long.”
“Ready, Christopher?” Jeannie was in a pure white, fluffy three quarter coat and a matching fluffy hat that sat low on her brow.
He kissed Lorelle on the lips, almost leaping to the door.
“Wait!” Lorelle called. “I'll come with you. I could do with stretching my legs.”
“Lorelle, my car is a two-seater,” Christopher said.
“Oh yes. Well don't be too long. I'll miss you, darling” She gave him a long, lingering kiss and slowly released the grip on his neck.
“Don't worry, we won't be.”
Lorelle crossed to the window and watched them pull away out of the drive.
“Well, well, well,” Judith said. “Imagine that. He looked like he couldn't wait to get back to Jeannie's house.”
“Correction. Jeannie couldn't wait to get him back to her place. I trust Christopher.”
She left the living room and went upstairs. She closed the door, her chest heaving up and down as she leaned her back up against it.
Eventually she slid onto the bed, looking over at the clock to see how long it would take them to get to and from Jeannie's house. She had no idea where Jeannie lived but when an hour went by and then another and then another she began to panic. She sat up on the bed and crossed her legs up to her chest, gripping them with her arms and gently rocking.
Finally, after three and a quarter hours, she heard Christopher and Jeannie in the hall downstairs. She was tempted to rush to him and demand an explanation for his tardiness but she knew there would be a perfectly reasonable explanation, one that would make her seem unreasonable. Another argument was the last thing she needed. She waited patiently for Christopher to come up to the room. When he did it was with a stony face. He had Lorelle's sketch book in his hand, it was open at the last sketch she'd made. The one of Judith.
“Who is this supposed to be?” he asked.
“No-one, just came out of my imagination.” She got up to take it from him but he whisked it away.
“Is this supposed to be of my mother?”
“No! And why were you looking through it?”
“You left it downstairs and mother was curious about your work.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really, Lorelle. What is it with you? It's like you've become a different person this holiday. I'm seeing you in a whole other light.” He crossed to the table where he returned her sketch pad.
“I didn't mean anything by it, Christopher. You're not exactly passionate about her yourself.”
“But I wouldn't do anything mean. Not like this.” He nodded to the pad and went over to the window.
“You're right. I shouldn't have done it. It was mean and childish of me.” She tore out the page and ripped it into several pieces. “There, I'll go and apologize to your mother.”
“It's the least you could do considering what she did for you today.”
“What did she do?”
“One of her guests has a designer boutique. She asked her to bring at least three gowns that you could choose from for the party. She'll pay for the one you choose and if you wanted one of the others she'd buy that too.”
“Oh my God. I don't believe it.” Lorelle put her hands to her mouth. “The lengths that woman would go to.”
“The lengths she would go to, how do you mean?”
“I mean, to make sure I was happy. She's so kind. I was a bitch and I'm going right down there to plead for forgiveness.”
“Thank you, Lorelle.”
She found Judith in the living room with Jeannie.
“I guess that's another point to you, Judith,” she said. “I'm looking forward to trying on those designer dresses. And you know what?”
“What?”
“It's likely I just might fall in love with all of them.”
8
Christmas morning finally arrived. Lorelle's night was not at all as restful as it could have been. The thought of coming down to meet those two women with dark circles under her eyes was a daunting prospect, especially as she knew Jeannie would be immaculately turned out. She had to keep her cool and not let them get to her. It was just one more day. But each time she looked at the clock getting closer and closer to morning, she shuddered. She finally fell into a deep sleep at about three am.
As Lorelle opened her eyes she could sense a buzz of activity going on downstairs. She knew that Judith and, most likely, Jeannie would have been awake and up before five, fresh and ready to face the day. On their agenda; a fine Christmas lunch, an even more splendid Christmas party and to steal Christopher right from under her nose.
She lay on her back, contemplating the possibility that Christopher might become interested in Jeannie and more than likely did see her as wife material. His mother was right in some respects when she said that she and Christopher had been together for ten months and he had barely spoken about her, never bought anything remotely intimate and had never talked openly about their future.
She turned to look at him as he slept. His face was towards her, his arms were folded onto his pillow and his head lay on top of them. His chin was slightly rough with untamed stubble and he had what looked like a smile on his face as he dreamed.
What was he dreaming about she wondered and how would it be when they drove back to the city the next morning? Would there be happiness between them or would they end up having another of the ridiculous arguments they'd resorted to having these past few days as a result of Judith's assault on their relationship? What if they didn't survive the day? What then?
Lorelle could not imagine a day when Christopher wasn't in her life but she had never told him how she felt either. Maybe she should have taken that precaution before they left but she had no idea whether letting him know she loved him would have sent Christopher running or bring them closer together.
Eventually he stirred and opened his eyes. He squinted because the curtains were open from the night before and the low winter sun was filtering into the room past the old, bare oak outside the window.
“Happy Christmas,” she said to him and bent to kiss his cheek.
He pulled her towards him as he rolled onto his side.
“I'm sure we can do better than that for Christmas greeting,” he said. He went to kiss her lips but there was a knock on the door. Rapid little taps like an emergency had come up.
“Yoo hoo! Christopher? Are you awake?” It was Jeannie. “Your mother sent me to wake you as she's making a special breakfast and then we're opening presents.”
“We'll be right there,” Christopher called over his shoulder. He looked back to Lorelle in his arms. “We can be quick, what do you think?”
“I think Jeannie is standing outside the door, waiting to hear you getting up. Who knows, she might even come in and help you get dressed.”
He laughed.
“Okay, let's get up then,” he said. “Christmas here we come.”
They shared a shower and resisted the temptation to do more than wash, as difficult as it was. She was glad the sketch book incident seemed to have been forgotten They dressed quickly after yet another urgent knock on the door from Jeannie and her calling, “Five minutes!” from the other side of it.
“Merry Christmas, Mother!” Christopher said as they entered the kitchen, holding hands. He kissed Judith who was placing a waffle onto a large plate, on top of a stack of about one hundred more.
“Morning my
darling and Merry Christmas to you too.” She hugged him when she set them down on the table in the kitchen. “Look, I made your favorites. Waffles. And Jeannie was keen to learn how to make them too. I gave her the special recipe.”
“These look great, Mother. Thank you.” He sat down and Lorelle followed suit. “I used to love these as a kid, Lorelle. They were an extra treat at Christmas after opening presents.”
“That sounds fun,” Lorelle said, “and Happy Christmas, everyone.”
There was a ripple of Happy Holiday exchanges and Christopher began to eat. They all followed his example, but in silence. There was a strange atmosphere in the room and a series of glances between the women took place. Christopher and Philip were not able to pick up on anything out of the ordinary going on. Lorelle made sure she was not the first to speak. She was frightened of saying the wrong thing and falling into a trap. A trap she was sure, Judith and Jeannie had concocted in the early hours of the morning.